This blog publishes market news relating to the companies listed in Bursa Malaysia, as well as business news in general. You can search and find all the past market and business news by searching within this Blog.

Thursday, December 2, 2010

#Stocks to watch:* Dialog, KYM, SILK, Aeon, JCY, K-Star

KUALA LUMPUR:'' Markets are expected to get a boost on Thursday, Dec 2 from the strong overnight close on Wall Street after the Dow and the S&P 500 posted their biggest gains in three months on Wednesday as efforts to resolve the EU's debt crisis helped push the S&P above 1,200, an important technical level that signals the potential for the rally to continue.

In Brussels, the European Central Bank is under pressure to unveil new steps to stabilise the euro zone when it meets on Thursday as the currency bloc battles a crippling debt crisis that has stoked contagion fears in the United States and Asia, according to Reuters.

Germany struggled to sell its government debt on Wednesday and Portugal's borrowing costs soared in further signs that an 85-billion-euro ($110.7-billion) EU/IMF rescue of Ireland last weekend and public assurances from leaders that the euro will be defended at any cost have failed to impress investors. European Union leaders appeared to pass the baton to the ECB, which holds its monthly meeting on Thursday.

At Bursa Malaysia, stocks to watch include DIALOG GROUP BHD [], KYM HOLDINGS BHD [], SILK Holding Bhd and AEON Co (M) Bhd. Also in focus would be K-Star Sports, whose share price plunged in the absence of fresh negative news, and JCY International Bhd which hit a fresh low after it posted net losses in its fourth quarter ended Sept 30.

Dialog is acquiring a 90% stake in Fitzroy Engineering Group Ltd (FEGL), one of New Zealand's largest heavy fabrication and multi-disciplined engineering companies, for RM31.7 million cash. The share purchase would further strengthen and enhance its fabrication business in the oil, gas and petrochemical industry, leveraging on FEGL's strengths in high quality engineering capabilities, business processes and methodologies as well as intellectual property rights for welding procedures.

'The integration of FEGL into Dialog's fabrication business will provide Dialog group with immediate access to the established New Zealand market as well as provide growth opportunities for our Australian market,' Dialog said.'' The acquisition was also in line with its strategy of focusing and growing its core businesses, penetrating new markets and investing in businesses with long term sustainable income, said Dialog.

KYM Holdings Bhd is teaming up with the Perak State Development Corporation to build a heavy industrial park in Bagan Datoh. The project would involve the reclamation of 3,400 acres and the CONSTRUCTION [] of the infrastructure, including a jetty/jetties. The project is near the proposed an iron ore distribution centre and pellet plant at Teluk Rubiah to be built by Vale International SA.

SILK Holding Bhd's subsidiary, Jasa Merin (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd has accepted a RM12 million contract to provide an anchor handling tug supply vessel. The contract was for a primary period of eight months with an extension option.

AEON Co (M) Bhd plans to invest as much as RM200 million in a new shopping centre in Rawang, Selangor, which will be the company's 28th store in Malaysia.

Hong Kong-listed Parkson Retail Group Ltd (PRG) is expected to realise a pre-tax gain of approximately 40.0 million renminbi (RM19 million) from the disposal of its indirect 55% stake'' in Yangzhou Parkson Plaza Co Ltd. PARKSON HOLDINGS BHD [] said on Wednesday, Dec 1 that PRG had completed the disposal of Yangzhou Parkson Plaza Co Ltd for 78.5 million renminbi (RM36.9 million).

The projects would be in Sungai Udang port, Melaka and would include two floating storage units (FSUs) to receive and store LNG; an island jetty and regasification units to regasify LNG; and subsea and onshore pipelines to transport the regasified LNG to the Peninsular Gas Utilisation pipeline network.